Sinner says new rivalry what tennis needs

Otago Daily Times

16 hours ago

Jannik Sinner believes his battle for supremacy with fellow French Open finalist Carlos Alcaraz could become the defining rivalry of their era and is something the sport needs with its golden generation of players calling time on their careers.
Sinner beat Novak Djokovic 6-4 7-5 7-6(3) in a generational battle on Court Philippe Chatrier on Friday to deny his Serbian opponent a record 25th Grand Slam and leave him unsure whether he will ever return to Roland Garros, where he has won three major trophies.
The 23-year-old Italian, who is seeking his fourth Grand Slam title, booked a mouth-watering meeting with his main rival Alcaraz, of Spain, who will aim to retain his crown in Paris and add a fifth major to his trophy cabinet.
Djokovic entered the contest riding on a 27-match winning streak in Paris, having claimed the 2023 French Open, the 2023 Paris Masters, the 2024 Paris Olympics gold and a Roland Garros run last year that was abandoned after he suffered a knee injury during his fourth round win.
Sinner, however, was unimpressed - brimming with confidence after capturing the last two majors at the 2024 US Open and this year's Australian Open,
Playing a younger, modern version of himself, the 38-year-old Djokovic looked every bit his age for a while on Chatrier as Sinner used his blistering forehand to send the Serbian chasing the ball left, right and centre.
But the former world No 1 showed he thrived on the grandest stage and threatened a comeback only to miss three set points in the third.
Sinner, who recently came back from a doping ban, stood firm in the tiebreak and wrapped up the contest on his second match point to reach his maiden Roland Garros final.
Calling Djokovic the greatest player of all time, Sinner later said: "It was such a special occasion for me playing Novak in the semi-finals of a Grand Slam and I had to step up and play the best tennis I could.
"He's such a role model for us young players. I tried to not think about this but before going on court you feel the tension and what's coming against you."
Alcaraz composed himself after a slow start before charging into back-to-back French Open finals when Italian eighth seed Lorenzo Musetti retired with a left thigh injury while trailing 4-6 7-6(3) 6-0 2-0 on Friday.
Alcaraz is attempting to become only the third man to retain his Roland Garros title this century after Rafa Nadal and Gustavo Kuerten in Sunday's final.
"It's never great to go through like this," Alcaraz said, before hailing Musetti's achievement of reaching at least the semi-finals of all four elite claycourt events this year.
"He's a great player, he has had an incredible claycourt season ... I wish him a speedy recovery and I'm sure we'll be enjoying his tennis pretty soon."
Musetti twice denied Alcaraz the chance to break in the opening nine games before the 23-year-old suddenly dialled up the intensity and snatched the opening set when his Spanish opponent produced errors in a poor service game.
A frustrated Alcaraz kicked his bench during the second set but finally found a way through Musetti's dogged defence to draw level after a tiebreak and then produced a dazzling display of power and precision to dish out a bagel in the third set.
Musetti, who reached the Monte Carlo final before the Madrid and Rome semi-finals, was hampered by the leg problem during the third set and threw in the towel two games into the fourth.
With Djokovic now the only active member of tennis' Big Four that also included Roger Federer (Switzerland), Rafa Nadal (Spain) and Sir Andy Murray (UK) and yielded a collective 69 major titles in more than two decades, Sinner senses an opportunity for himself and Alcaraz.
"It takes time to compare us with the Big Three or Big Four, no? Only time can tell, to be honest," Sinner told reporters.
"For sure, from my point of view, he's a player who makes me a better player. He pushes me to the limit. We try to understand where we have to improve, for the next times I play against him.
"I believe that tennis or every sport needs rivalries. This could be potentially one of them, but there are amazing players coming up. There can be so many different and other players joining or one drops. You never know."
Sunday's clash on Court Philippe Chatrier will mark only the 12th time that Sinner and Alcaraz have faced off, with the 22-year-old Spaniard looking for a fifth straight victory over his opponent to successfully defend his title.
Djokovic said the pair would have to keep going to match the rivalry that he had with Federer, now aged 43, Nadal (39) and Murray (38).
"At the moment, that's hard, because they need to play against each for at least 10-plus years non-stop in order to be part of the same discussion," he added.
"But they're definitely great for tennis, both of them. I think their rivalry is something our sport needs."
Sinner said he and Alcaraz had a similar aura and could get more fans interested in the sport.
"He's a player with charisma, with that aura," Sinner said.
"The moment he steps on court, you can feel his presence. In the end, that's exactly what tennis needs. The more people like that, the more players like that, the better. In the end, it's exactly those players who bring people closer to the sport and make them want to watch tennis."
Meanwhile, Djokovic has yet to decide whether his defeat against Sinner was his final appearance at Roland Garros.
"This could have been the last match ever I played here. I don't know," he told media after the match.
"I don't know what tomorrow brings in my career. Wimbledon is next. Twelve months at this point in my career is a long time. Do I wish to play more? Yes I do."